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Parent involvement the key to student success. If parents could have two magic bullets to help their children grow up to be happy and successful, according to national education expert Dr. Susan Quattrociocchi, those would be love and math. Quattrociocchi spoke to 1,000 educators and employers on October 4 in Falmouth at the Massachusetts Department of Education’s conference, “Charting the Course for Student Success”. The founder of a Washington State project, A Call to Parents, Quattrociocchi argued that parents are a greater influence on their children’s success than educators, and that schools need to do a better job engaging parents – particularly in the middle and high school years. A national teen drug-abuse prevention advertisement says, “Love. The anti-drug.” Love – or parents’ involvement in children’s lives – also has a profound effect on children’s academic and career success. A U.S. Department of Education study found that only eight percent of high school students with “not very involved parents” go on to earn college degrees, whereas 27 percent of high school students with “highly involved parents” do. Unfortunately, sometimes parents face barriers connecting with their children’s education. School buildings can be intimidating. Some parents are wary of authority figures. Conferences and events may be difficult for parents with low-wage, inflexible jobs to attend. Quattrociocchi shared with the audience three commandments for working with parents, in addition to making schools more welcoming to visitors: 1) Connect the parent to the child, not to you (the educator); 2) Make the involvement meaningful to the parent; and 3) Make involvement doable for parents who aren’t coming. Find them where they are in the community or home and meet them there. A strong school-family connection can greatly improve the chances for students’ career success, and that’s where math comes in. Parents can control the home environment success factors regarding school attendance, reading material in the home, amount of TV children watch, and amount of time parents spend reading to children. But schools need to help families understand the significance of the three “gateway” classes, which according to research help students from all incomes and backgrounds get into college: algebra, geometry, and chemistry. Encouraging students to pursue math through high school doesn’t mean dictating that they should all focus on technology careers. On the contrary, Quattrociocchi urged parents and teachers to help students discover their unique talents and explore how they can be applied in a field of interest. The problem-solving skills in math and science, however, are building blocks for higher education as well as for the technical skills required by 75 percent of tomorrow’s jobs. For more information about A Call to Parents and school-family connections, see www.calltoparents.org. The Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation recently sent out grant applications to schools for the 2001-2002 Chamber Grant and Mini-Grant programs. Chamber Grants are available up to $2500 and Mini-Grants up to $500. The purpose of the grants is to promote the development of innovative programs to provide students with skills for the 21st century workplace, and to foster a positive working relationship between schools and businesses in the Blackstone Valley. Grant proposals are due November 2, 2001. For more information contact the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation at 508-234-9090. Susan Spencer Read previous Focus on Education articles...
Six years of focusing on education. (November 2006) |
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Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce
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